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Baby Halfmoon Conure

s.emilia.r

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Hello! I recently purchased a Halfmoon Conure that is about a month and one week old. He is handfed three times a day. However, I was wondering when should I stop handfeeding him? I was also wondering when should I handfeed him once a day?
 

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Zara

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Welcome to the Avenue :)

Wow, 5 weeks is very young. Where do you live? Unless you´re in Australia or a tropical climate, you will need a brooder and heat pad under for the bird to live in for now.
The book on top has a coil, what material is that? Is it metal? If so, is it bird safe metal? At this age and onwards, you bird will start beaking items to explore them.

He is handfed three times a day. However, I was wondering when should I stop handfeeding him? I was also wondering when should I handfeed him once a day?
You have quite a long way to go with handfeeding.
Stick to 3 feeds. Once you notice the bird isn´t eating the full amount you normally give, and is eating adult foods (which won´t be for another week or so yet anyway), then you can reduce to two feeds, morning and night.
When you are down to one feed, it must be the night feed.
Be sure when your bird is old enough to eat adult foods, that you are offering water too.
Keep track of weight to monitor.
One day when you are down to one feed, he will refuse it. Offer it for the following 5-7 days, then you can stop. If he cries or begs for it after then, feel free to feed it again on a small spoon, or some mashed warm veggies (this is called comfort feeding).

I believe conures wean around the 3 month mark, but hopefully another member can confirm that.
@Mockinbirdiva @Monica @finchly
 

s.emilia.r

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Hey! Thank you for replying. I live in Puerto Rico and I also removed the notebook just in case it was not safe for him. So should I start feeding him pellets in a week or? Thank you so much for your advice!
 

Monica

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I would suggest finely chopping up some vegetables and *maybe* a bit of fruit and feeding that as well as some soaked or sprouted seeds in 1-2 weeks time. Even if your baby doesn't eat the food, offer it. They are curious creatures and he, or she, will start exploring and using beak. Once your chick is able to actually handle eating, then you could try harder foods.

Keep a close eye on weight as well using a gram scale to make sure your chick is growing. You want to feed up to 10% of weight at each feeding.
 

s.emilia.r

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Hello! So I just found that he will be a month old on the fourth of March. I was told to handfeed him three times a day so in the morning, afternoon and night. However, he seems really hungry after his first feed in the morning so I have been feeding him four times a day. Is that bad? Should I stick to three times a day?
 

Monica

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If you aren't feeding about 10% of his weight at each feeding then yes, you want to feed more often.

If he's developmentally delayed, then it's also fine to feed a bit more often.
 

Mockinbirdiva

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Halfmoon conures typically wean around 7-8 weeks. With that said... you should offer formula until he refuses completely which could be 9-10 weeks. Not all babies wean at the same time. As mentioned you should have a gram scale to keep track of his weight daily and keep a log- notebook of his weight. Always weigh first thing in the morning before the first feeding to get an accurate weight. If he's doing well with his feedings ( how many cc's does he eat at each feeding? What temperature are you feeding the formula? ) I would wait until he's around 7 weeks old to offer soft foods. You want to make sure he's getting all the nutrition he needs which is what the formula is providing. Since you are going to put him on a pelleted diet you can soak some of his pellets to start with. A small shallow dish so he can easily see and get to them.. along with other soft foods for him to explore.

We don't see many halfmoons on the forum so it will be interesting to see what personality you're little guy will have. They do have bold temperaments and aren't known to be terribly snuggly even if you hand feed. Like most conures, they enjoy the company of their human but with some limitations. Once your baby is fully feathered allow him to learn how to fly. Too many people will clip flight feathers to make it easier to handle a young bird. Flight is extremely important in their physical and mental development.
 
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